PTI founder approaches Supreme Court again, seeking nullification of trial court\u2019s verdict
\nISLAMABAD
\nPakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has approached the Supreme Court (SC) seeking nullification of his conviction in the Toshakhana case and the trial court\u2019s verdict.
\nLawyers of the PTI\u2019s top leader submitted the appeal against his Toshakhana conviction after rectifying the objections raised by the Supreme Court Registrar\u2019s Office earlier.
\nThe SC Registrar\u2019s Office returned Khan\u2019s appeal on December 23, saying the documents attached to the appeal were incomplete and directing the petitioner to refile it with all the relevant papers on January 6.
\nThe appeal was filed by Sardar Latif Khosa under Article 185 of the Constitution.
\nEx-PM\u2019s conviction, disqualification
\nThe former prime minister was sentenced to three years in prison and imposed a fine of Rs100,000 by Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADSJ) Humayun Dilawar on August 5, 2023, after the judge found Khan guilty of graft in the case.
\nKhan\u2019s conviction in the case resulted in his disqualification from holding any public office for five years.
\nOn Saturday, the ousted premier had petitioned the apex court against the Islamabad High Court\u2019s (IHC) order in the Toshakhana case as part of his efforts to overturn the conviction in the case to contest the general elections scheduled for February 8, 2024.
\nIHC ruling
\nHowever, the IHC had dismissed the PTI supremo\u2019s plea seeking suspension of the trial court\u2019s verdict.
\nIn his plea filed in the IHC \u2014 the same court that had suspended his sentence \u2014 Khan had sought to nullify the conviction.
\nIn the fresh petition, Khan appealed the IHC\u2019s verdict to be stayed, stating that his sentence in the Toshakhana case had already been suspended.
\nHe contended that he is being denied his fundamental right to contest elections due to the suspension of only his sentence instead of the entire order of conviction by the trial court, which bars him from running for office.
\nThe IHC\u2019s two-member bench had on December 21 turned down Khan\u2019s request for the suspension of his conviction, which would have paved the way for his eligibility to stand in elections.
\nWhat is the case?
\nUnder the rules governing Toshakhana \u2014 a Persian word meaning \u201ctreasure house\u201d \u2014 government officials can keep gifts if they have a low worth, while they must pay a dramatically reduced fee to the government for extravagant items.
\nThe Toshakhana has been under a microscope ever since the emergence of the allegations that Imran Khan purchased the gifts he received as prime minister at throwaway rates and sold them off in the open market for staggering profits.
\nThe 70-year-old cricketer-turned-politician was accused of misusing his 2018 to 2022 premiership to buy and sell gifts in state possession that were received during visits abroad and worth more than Rs140 million ($635,000).
\nThe gifts included watches given by a royal family, according to government officials, who have alleged previously that Khan\u2019s aides sold them in Dubai.
\nMoreover, seven wristwatches, six made by watchmaker Rolex, and the most expensive a \u201cMaster Graff limited edition\u201d valued at 85 million Pakistani rupees ($385,000), were also among the gifts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
PTI founder approaches Supreme Court again, seeking nullification of trial court\u2019s verdict ISLAMABAD Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan has approached the Supreme Court (SC) seeking nullification of his conviction in the Toshakhana case and the trial court\u2019s verdict. Lawyers of the PTI\u2019s top leader submitted the appeal against his Toshakhana conviction after rectifying the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":319236,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[2833],"class_list":["post-376906","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-top-news","tag-imran-khan"],"yoast_head":"\n